Chapter 379: Did The Covenant call you?

Because if she was dead, if The Covenant killed her, then she was gone forever. And Dante would never have the satisfaction of seeing Dimitri suffer because of the pain he had personally infilted on him. He’d never have the victory of proving his superiority. He’d never have the moment where Dimitri understood that he was the stronger man.

She’d just be dead.

And he would be left holding nothing but the knowledge that he’d been used. That he was a tool. That his personal vendetta had been hijacked by an organization with far larger ambitions and far less mercy.

***

The knock on the door came at 12:47 AM.

"Yeah," Dante called out, pulling himself back into focus.

Luca entered, his expression alert but not alarmed. He’d learned over years of working with Dante to read the difference between operational stress and personal crisis.

"You okay?" Luca asked.

"Did The Covenant call you?" Dante asked instead of answering.

"No," Luca said. "They called you?"

Dante nodded slowly, and Luca immediately moved to close the door and entered the room.

"Talk to me," Luca said, settling into the chair across from Dante’s desk.

Dante was quiet for a long moment, trying to find words for something that defied easy articulation.

"I think," Dante finally said, his voice carefully controlled, "that The Covenant wants to kill Eve."

Luca’s expression didn’t change, but Dante could see something shift in his eyes. Understanding. Processing. Tactical reassessment.

"They said that explicitly?" Luca asked.

"They said they’re going to teach Dimitri the same lesson they taught his father," Dante said. "They said they’re going to eliminate the one thing that matters to him most. Just like they eliminated Claire, Dimitri’s mother"

Luca understood the reference immediately. Everyone in their world knew about Claire. Everyone knew that The Covenant had killed Dimitri’s mother as a message to Antonio years ago.

"So they’re planning to murder Eve," Luca said flatly.

"Yes," Dante confirmed.

"And they told you this?" Luca asked.

"They told me I needed to stand down," Dante said. "No operations for two weeks. They’re handling Eve. I’m to wait and be ready for when they’ve finished the job."

Luca leaned back in his chair, processing this development.

"That changes everything," Luca said quietly.

"It does," Dante agreed.

"You’re a pawn," Luca said. "You understand that, right? You’re not their partner. You’re not their ally. You’re a tool they’re using to keep Dimitri distracted while they execute their actual plan."

Dante felt something cold settle in his chest.

"Yes," he said. "I understand."

"And you’re okay with that?" Luca asked, and there was something in his voice that suggested Luca already knew the answer to that question.

"No," Dante said. "But what choice do I have? They told me what happens if I refuse. I’m replaceable. Eve is the target. If I don’t comply, I’m eliminated."

Luca nodded slowly, understanding the calculation.

"So you wait," Luca said. "You stand down for two weeks. You let them execute whatever plan they have. And then..."

"And then I inherit what’s left of Dimitri’s empire," Dante finished. "Assuming I haven’t been eliminated by then for being inconvenient."

"They’ll keep you alive," Luca said. "At least for a while. They need someone to run operations. They need a face for the organization. But after that..." Luca trailed off, letting the implication hang in the air.

After that, Dante would be as disposable as anyone else who’d outlived their usefulness to The Covenant.

Dante stood and moved to the window, looking out at Rome.

He thought about Eve. About the way she’d looked at him in that warehouse, a mixture of fear and defiance. About the way she’d fought his men when they’d tried to take her. About the certainty in her eyes that Dimitri would come for her.

She’d been right.

Dimitri had come. Dimitri had won. Dimitri had taken her back.

And now, without Dante’s knowledge or consent, without his ability to stop it or change it, The Covenant was going to execute her.

Not because of Dante’s vendetta. But because of their own agenda.

"What do you want to do?" Luca asked quietly.

Dante didn’t answer immediately. He stood there in the darkness, understanding that whatever choice he made next would define everything that followed.

He could comply with The Covenant’s orders. He could stand down, wait the two weeks, and let them kill Eve. He could then inherit Dimitri’s empire and spend the rest of his life as a puppet dancing on The Covenant’s strings, knowing that he’d allowed them to execute an innocent woman.

Or he could resist. He could refuse their orders. He could move against Eve to protect her or hide her or prevent The Covenant from reaching her.

But that path meant war against an organization that included elements of the federal government. That path meant certain death. That path meant he’d be erased from existence without a trace.

"I think," Dante said finally, his voice hollow, "that I just made the biggest mistake of my life."

"What mistake?" Luca asked.

"I thought The Covenant was my tool," Dante said. "I thought that their backing meant I was finally in control of my own destiny. But I was wrong. I’m their tool. I’m their pawn. And I’ve just realized it too late to change anything."

Luca was quiet, understanding the implications of what Dante was saying.

"So what do we do?" Luca asked.

Dante turned from the window to look at his loyal second.

"We do exactly what they told us to do," Dante said, and there was despair in his voice now. "We stand down. We wait. And we watch as The Covenant executes the final move in their game."

"And then?, After they have dealt with Dimitri, what comes next?" Luca pressed.

"And then," Dante said quietly, "we deal with whatever comes after. Because I have a feeling that surviving The Covenant’s victory is going to be far worse than being eliminated by them."